Martinez's REAL Mission is good thing for at-risk students; more should get involved

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Published
7:00 pm CDT, Saturday, August 20, 2011

To the editor:

I was invited to attend a commencement ceremony by Pct. 4 Justice of the Peace Oscar O. Martinez on June 30 at one of the IBC Bank locations off Loop 20 to celebrate and acknowledge the transformation of 13 young lives.

I was extremely impressed by what I experienced that evening and decided to write these words to share my thoughts with the community.

The REAL Mission Program was implemented by United States Border Patrol Laredo Sector, specifically Mr. Elwynn Sherman, field operations supervisor of the Laredo Sector Drug Demand Reduction Program, and his incredible staff. The concept was spearheaded by Judge Martinez.

The acronym REAL stands for Rewarding, Education, Attitude and Leadership. Judge Martinez chose 13 students with chronic truancy issues from UISD and presented them with the opportunity to participate in this life-changing program.

Upon arriving to the ceremony, the first thing that struck me was a vision of true collaboration which consisted of United States Border Patrol Laredo Sector, U.S. Rep. Henry Cuellar, the Webb County Precinct 4 Constable and Webb County Sheriff’s Office, to name a few.

The second was the true sense of camaraderie among the 13 graduating students — consisting of middle and high school UISD students.

The positive energy, pride and clarity coming from them throughout the ceremony demonstrated the transformation that had occurred as a result of participating in this program.

As I observed the activities, I noticed families chatting among themselves about the incredible, positive changes in behavior that their sons and daughters had gone through as a result of this program.

I felt their pride as they listened to their loved ones step up to the podium and express their gratitude toward them.

Each one spoke directly to family members, thanking them for not giving up on them, for standing by them through the hard times and for believing in them.

Each graduate also expressed what they had learned about themselves, including improved self-esteem, responsibility, public service, the importance of education, leading drug-free lives, teamwork, gratitude for their families and self-respect.

As I processed the evening at bedtime, I was thinking how wonderful it would be if we, as a community, could advocate for youth by expanding their horizons by promoting the REAL Mission Program to all UISD and LISD students at risk.

Of course, that would mean a little extra work for our community leaders, but isn’t that why we became involved in public service?

I challenge justices of the peace from all districts to commit to joining the REAL Mission movement by contacting Mr. Elwynn Sherman, field operations supervisor for the Laredo Sector Drug Demand Reduction Program, at 956-764-3190 or Judge Oscar Martinez’s office at 956-721-2510.

Note: Kudos to IBC Bank for sponsoring this awesome event and to all the sponsors supporting this incredible program.